Monday, December 11, 2006

the joy of carrots

I made the most amazing dish last night, a side of carrots (the entree, a rosemary and Chianti risotto, was pretty fabulous, too, but it was the carrots which were a revelation). This caused me to re-evaluate carrots: who knew they could taste this way? They were still identifiable as carrots, but somehow richer and more intense, like special, treasure carrots grown for a millionaire.

The problem, though, is this is true Slow Food. Perhaps you have heard of the Slow Movement, in its book, online (reader/commenter the Freewheeling Spirit writes about it occasionally). Here's your chance to take a foray into the world of the slow movement:



Slow Cooked Carrots by Jack Bishop (my idol! He also taught me to caramelize endive, and caramelized endive is one of the wonders of the world, I'm telling you)

1 1/4 lbs carrots
5 T butter
Salt to taste

Peel carrots. Slice carrots into 1/4 in. rounds on the bias. Put in lg. saute pan with the butter. Cook, at low heat, stirring often, for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hrs, until the carrots are brown and shrunken. Sprinkle with salt. Serve immediately (best if it accompanies a rather plain entree; I served it alongside a red wine & rosemary risotto).

From now on, whenever I have a big dinner party when I'm going to be in the kitchen for hours, I'll do the Slow Cooked Carrots.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

this sounds yummy (tho time consuming). i wonder if you could use olive oil in addition or add fresh rosemary too.

plus you could dip them in milkshakes :).

the Drunken Housewife said...

I think olive oil would be okay, but I would NOT put in rosemary. If you use olive oil, use a milder one (rather than those Sicilian extra virgin ones I like that are so murky and tasty). The focus should be on the unusually rich and deep carrot flavor; it needs nothing else.

Anonymous said...

really? cause i make a FIERCE sweet potato roast. toss the SP pieces in olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper. spread on a baking sheet without them touching and slide in an oven for 40 minutes until they are toasty around the edges. it will change your view of SPs forever.

ps. yes, you are my newest obsession. you remind me of all my straight GFs when i lived un NYC. tell the SH i am harmless.

Freewheel said...

DH, thanks for doing your part for the slow food movement. If just one person opts to make your carrot recipe rather than go out for a Big Mac, then it will all be worth it.

Hughman, I have a really good Morroccan stew recipe that's based around sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, it also takes a long time to make.

the Drunken Housewife said...

I'm going to contend that there is a big difference between the flavors you get from roasting for 40 min. and cooking for 1 1/2 hrs (90 min). I also like to roast vegs. w/olive oil, and it's great, but the intense, unheard of before flavor of those slow cooked carrots was very different from the carrots I've previously oven roasted before. Try it!

Anonymous said...

Anything with 5T butter is going to be pretty good.

Freewheel said...

I sent a message to the Slownow list recommending that members check out this recipe on your blog.